New Legislation Might Kickstart Downtown Workplace-to-Housing Conversions. However It’s Solely Half the Battle

The highway map to rescue San Francisco’s Downtown is starting to take form with new laws meant to streamline the method of turning underused workplace buildings to housing and deal with the rising variety of industrial vacancies within the metropolis’s central enterprise district.

Planning officers have mentioned that, not like different elements of the town, housing conversions are allowed Downtown beneath present zoning. The issue typically lies within the particulars, corresponding to constructing requirements for entrances, exits and open areas, which may be tough to realize in older Downtown buildings.  

The laws, from Mayor London Breed and Supervisor Aaron Peskin, would change the town’s planning codes to chill out guidelines for conversion initiatives like rear yard, publicity and parking necessities. 

San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin has made Downtown revitalization a key legislative precedence. | Brian Feulner for The Normal

The laws might be heard by the Planning Fee and the Constructing Inspection Fee within the coming weeks earlier than going to the Board of Supervisors for approval. 

Peskin, who represents Downtown and North Seaside, acknowledged in an interview that the legislative course of will solely be “round half the battle.” 

It’s within the Particulars

Among the many changes but to be made are technical modifications that have to be hammered out by numerous metropolis departments and shared with builders and constructing house owners. However the metropolis has a blueprint for this course of within the instance of multifamily accent dwelling unit (ADU) conversions.

Assemblymember Matt Haney has additionally launched new state laws to expedite initiatives that convert workplace area to housing.

“That is the 1st step in direction of implementing an answer and transformation to Downtown,” Peskin mentioned. “Smaller buildings are owned by household trusts and people. They want technical help and their arms. Persons are going to wish to promote this to them.”

Mark Hogan, an area architect with OpenScope Studio who labored intently with Peskin on the laws, mentioned that constructing, hearth and planning departments have already been assembly to speak via a few of the points. 

Hogan’s urged modifications embrace categorizing hearth escapes as a second technique of exit or permitting the usage of present elevators, slightly than putting in a lot bigger elevators as present constructing codes require.

“The modifications will present extra certainty by minimizing the possibility that you simply’ll want to enter hearings, and clarifying he exceptions to the planning code you’ll obtain,” Hogan mentioned. “The thought is to ensure these modifications are all not going to be reviewed on a case-by-case foundation with probably wildly completely different solutions.”

Workplace-to-residential conversions have been positioned as a approach to rescue a Downtown hollowed out by distant work. However there are a number of main obstacles, chief amongst them points round value and uncertainty attributable to San Francisco’s sky-high constructing prices and complicated allowing course of.

Mayor London Breed delivers her State of the Metropolis deal with at Pier 70 on Feb. 9, 2023. | Noah Berger for The Normal

“These modifications shouldn’t be one thing that requires granting exceptions via prolonged paperwork and exhaustive public hearings,” mentioned Mayor London Breed in a press release. “We have to make the method simpler for gett
ing our buildings lively and full.”

Just one office-to-residential conversion undertaking has been proposed Downtown because the pandemic: a slice of workplace area within the historic Warfield Constructing that might be was 34 flats.

Buildings are starting to lose worth in keeping with decreased demand for workplace area. That’s unhealthy information for the town’s fiscal outlook, however may create new alternatives for traders to transform and revitalize them. 

“Collectively, the property house owners have been in a state of denial, hoping that the entire workplace staff are going to be flooding again to work and ignoring the truth that the character of labor is perpetually modified,” Peskin mentioned, including that this actuality is changing into finally inconceivable to disregard. 

Peskin mentioned the coverage modifications within the laws will final for an preliminary five-year interval with the potential of an extension in a bid to create a “hurry-up incentive” for builders and traders. 

“I don’t need anyone to assume that office-to-residential goes to be a panacea, and we will flick a swap to create 10,000 new items in a single day,” Peskin mentioned. “However I’d hope in a half decade, we’ll see a bunch of conversions, an injection of the humanities and actual placemaking creating fascinating nodes Downtown.”

One barrier to conversions not addressed within the laws is making the allowing course of as an entire sooner and extra environment friendly.

“That’s large, as a result of frankly if it takes you two or three years to get a allow to do these conversions, not lots of people are going to need to do it,” Hogan mentioned. 

Making Downtown Extra Livable

Robbie Silver, government director of the Downtown SF Partnership, mentioned he’s hopeful the laws “will energize The Metropolis’s financial core, help housing density, and reduce forms.”

Silver hopes to create alternatives for funding within the group’s Public Realm Motion Plan, which is supposed to shift the tradition Downtown to incorporate extra gathering areas for pedestrians centered round areas like Belden Place and Leidesdorff Alley.

Marisa Rodriguez, the manager director of the Union Sq. Alliance, in Union Sq. on Nov. 15, 2022. | Paul Kuroda for The Normal

The brand new laws additionally targets zoning guidelines in Union Sq., opening up different makes use of for the town’s central buying district. Further further workplace, service and retail makes use of could be allowed on higher flooring, with leisure, versatile retail and workspaces on the bottom stage.

Amongst different restrictions, workplace makes use of are at present not allowed on the second ground and require conditional use approval for flooring three via six. 

“Within the new regular of hybrid work, the town needs to be proactive about serving to create new causes for residents, staff and guests to need to come and spend their time Downtown,” mentioned Kate Sofis, government director of the Workplace of Financial and Workforce Growth (OEWD), in a press release. 

The third element of the laws will streamline Downtown improvement evaluate to permit for a higher number of floor ground makes use of and broaden the kind of momentary pop-ups that can be utilized to activate the vacant areas which have proliferated.  

Peskin mentioned the federal government ought to play a matchmaking position to search out keen landlords and non-traditional tenants. He mentioned he not too long ago acquired a name from an area artist and is in search of to hyperlink her with Embarcadero Heart proprietor Boston Properties to make use of one in all their vacant areas as a studio. 

“Let’s flip the lights on as quick as we will and say every little thing wanting a brothel is OK,” Peskin mentioned.

Native nonprofit SF New Deal was awarded a contract by OEWD to assist launch a program known as Vacant to Vibrant this spring to usher in pop-up activations via grants and technical help. 

“Decreasing the limitations for momentary and pop-up activations is a vital step to paving the way in which in direction of San Francisco’s restoration,” mentioned SF New Deal government director Simon Bertrang. “We hope to create a window into what the way forward for Downtown may be: progressive, various, inventive and vibrant.”

Peskin mentioned he and the mayor found they had been engaged on their very own particular person variations of laws and determined to merge their efforts. The collaboration attracts a stark distinction in comparison with competing proposals meant to reform the Division of Constructing Inspection and pace up the allowing course of.

“I’m more than happy that, as an alternative of getting to compete, we had been in a position to collaborate and cooperate and melded them collectively, taking the most effective of each variations,” Peskin mentioned. 

Kevin Truong may be reached at [email protected]




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